Disastrous Defense Sinks Detroit Lions, Fall, 29-24, to Pittsburgh Steelers

The Detroit Lions faced an old foe at Ford Field in a must-win Week 16 NFL contest.

Veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers made many weekends miserable for supporters, back when he ruled the NFC North playing for the Green Bay Packers.

Now with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Rodgers does not have the same caliber of weapons, but has led the AFC North squad to eight victories, prior to another crucial matchup against the Lions.

"I think, look, there's a lot of short passing, ball out type of throws," Dan Campbell said in a pregame interview with Dan Miller. "He's been really efficient that way. But I know this, he's finding the open receivers, he's progressing fast and he's not taking any hits, I can tell you that."

Detroit has been essentially forced into playoff mode right now, as Campbell's squad is still on the outside looking in of the NFC playoff race.

The offense and defense did not have anywhere close to their best performances in a critical game for Detroit's playoff hopes.

After 60 minutes of hard-fought action, the Lions could not overcome a poor run defense and a third-quarter that was dominated by the Steelers, even though there were exciting, heart-pounding moments.

Detroit was called for a late pass-interference, on the brink of a game-winning touchdown.

Here are several takeaways from the Lions' 29-24 loss.

Lions veteran tight end sparks offense, but no points scored in first quarter

Detroit went three-and-out on its first offensive drive, after the Steelers won the opening coin toss and elected to defer.

Pittsburgh got on the board first on its first offensive possession. Aidan Hutchinson derailed the drive when he was able to sack Rodgers for a nine-yard loss. Kicker Chris Boswell connected on a 59-yard field goal to give the Steelers an early 3-0 lead.

On Detroit's next offensive possession, tight end Anthony Firkser, who has had multiple stints in Motown, was targeted often. Jared Goff was able to connect with the 30-year-old on three tosses for 34 yards.

Near the goal line, Campbell again elected not to kick the field goal, opting to go for it on fourth down.

Unfortunately, Detroit was not able to convert on a fourth-and-goal play-action call, as cornerback Joey Porter Jr. broke up the pass play intended for Amon-Ra St. Brown.

Lions' run game struggles early

Detroit, like many NFL teams, want to establish the run on a weekly basis.

Coming into the game, Campbell's squad was 8-1 when recording at least 100 yards on the ground. Early in the game, Detroit struggled to establish the run.

On multiple occasions, Steelers' defenders found their way into the backfield to disrupt run plays.

Steelers linebacker Jack Sawyer and Alex Highsmith were able to disrupt Detroit's rushing attack, making life difficult for Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery.

Detroit tied the game on their third offensive possession. Jake Bates connected on a 36-yard field-goal to cap off an eight-play, 44-yard drive.

Goff went 10-of-14 for 104 yards through the middle of the second quarter and three possessions. Jameson Williams was able to record a couple of receptions early in the second quarter.

Tempo aids Lions' offense to get into gear

Late in the second quarter, Detroit's offense got into rhythm by boosting the tempo. On Detroit's fifth offensive possession, Goff found Isaac TesLaa, Gibbs and Williams to move the football down the field.

Detroit was finally able to get into the end zone just after the two-minute warning, as the veteran signal-caller connected with TeSlaa on a 20-yard touchdown reception.

The scoring drive spanned six-plays and 62 yards and took just over two mins to take a 10-3 lead.

Pittsburgh had one final possession prior to the end of the first half.

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Steelers tie game on fluky play

For most of the first-half, defense dominated the day. Both teams struggled to put together consistent drives, with the score being knotted at three points with two minutes to play in the second quarter.

Aidan Hutchinson was his usual dominant self, recording two sacks in the first half. However, the touchdown drive by the Lions ignited an offensive spark late in the second quarter.

Detroit appeared to have the Steelers bottled up, but Rodgers kept the drive alive with a 13-yard completion to Adam Thielen to convert a third-and-10. Two plays later, the Steelers scored a touchdown on what was a nearly indescribable and improbable play connection between Rodgers and Kenneth Gainwell.

Rodgers appeared to underthrow Gainwell, and the running back somehow found a way to corral the pass while going to the ground. He was not touched down by contact after controlling the pass, and as a result raced into the end zone.

Thomas Harper halts Steelers' momentum to start second half

Detroit's defense struggled coming out of halftime, allowing the Steelers to both run and pass the football effectively.

Thielan, Metcalf and Jaylen Warrren were all instrumental in assisting the Steelers move the football.

Rodgers led the team deep into Detroit territory when safety Thomas Harper made a momentum-changing play.

Harper knocked the football loose from Washington's possession and the football was recovered by linebacker Jack Campbell.

After Detroit challenged, the officials ruled the football was knocked loose prior to Washington hitting the turf.

Steelers sack Goff for a rare safety, eat up clock in third quarter

Unfortunately for Detroit, their next drive after the fumble recovery started on their own three-yard line.

Goff tossed the ball out of bounds, which was then followed by short toss to Gibbs. On 3rd-and-8 from their own five-yard line, the 31-year-old was sacked in his own end zone by Steelers safety Kyle Dugger.

After the safety, the Steelers took a 12-10 lead and marched down the field on the ensuing possession.

In the third-quarter, Detroit only ran three offensive plays, as the Steelers ate up the clock on a drive that lasted 17-plays and ate up nearly 10 minutes.

Detroit trailed 15-10 when they next had an opportunity on offense early in the fourth-quarter.

Lions' defense was a disaster in second half

After Warren extended the Steelers' lead to 22-10 on a 45-yard touchdown scamper, Detroit was able to respond with a solid offensive drive of its own.

Goff spread the football evenly and was even able to successfully convert a critical fourth down.

Veteran Kalif Raymond was targeted often, including on a 4th-and-2 call, trailing by 12.

Raymond was targeted and scampered 27 yards after the reception to trim the Steelers' lead to five, 22-17.

Unfortunately, Detroit's defense, needing a stop when trailing by five, gave up another 45-yard touchdown scamper to Warren.

Gibbs found the end zone in the fourth quarter to trim the Steelers lead to 29-24, giving the defense one more opportunity to make a stop.

The Steelers missed a 37-yard field goal that would have made it 32-24.